NHL Hot Stove » Nick Leddy

Blackhawks 1st win overshadowed by Hjalmarsson suspension

Ryan Hackett — Wed, 13 Oct 2010 01:20:05 +0000

Ryan Hackett discusses the Blackhawks and Corey Crawford’s first win of the season.

The Chicago Blackhawks notched their first win of the season Monday night erasing an early two-goal deficit en route to a 4-3 victory over the Buffalo Sabres. Aside from the defensively chaotic first several minutes, the Blackhawks played a solid game and took the game over after the rough start. Patrick Kane netted his first goal of the season in his hometown, Marian Hossa bagged a pair to continue his torrid pace, and even newcomer Nick Leddy notched his first career NHL goal in the contest. Even when you include a Sabres goal in the first twenty seconds, all those accomplishments pale in comparison to the controversial hit by Chicago’s Niklas Hjalmarsson on Buffalo’s Jason Pominville.

At the 14:18 mark of the first period, Pominville was about to play the puck along the boards when Hjalmarsson delivered a monster hit that sent the Buffalo winger hard into the boards and down to the ice, to be carried off on a stretcher. Hjalmarsson received a tive minute major for boarding and a game misconduct. The video of the play has been given the Zapruder treatment since it happened, with terms like headshot, intent, vicious, and suspension attached. After looking at the footage over and over, one thing is apparent: no one will ever agree on how the discipline committee should treat these situations.

Per media sources the league has recently ruled that the hit will cost the Hawks’ defenseman a two-game suspension, which, barring an appeal by the team, will allow him to play in Saturday’s rematch with the Sabres in Chicago. This could prove interesting, as numerous Sabres players have been very outspoken against the hit. According to the Chicago Sun-Times’ Adam Jahns Patrick Kaleta had the following to say: “When we play [Blackhawks] Sat. We’ll make a point that u can’t be taking hits like that against 1 of our leaders”. One thing I think everyone can agree on, the game is sure to be appointment television for hockey fans league-wide.

As is the case with any and all of these rulings, there are differing opinions on the league’s ruling here. Some say the hit was just an unfortunate play with no elbow or shoulder contact to the head. Some say it was a malicious act that warranted a benching in the neighborhood of ten or more games. There seems to be no right or wrong answers to these situations, as each one is different. Looking at the hit, the contact was definitely made with the body, so it fails to meet the criteria for the new rules specifically governing headshots. However, the league has made a concerted and obvious effort to protect the upper body of its players, and Hjalmarsson’s hit was made on what would be considered Pominville’s blind side.

With the ruling of two games, the league seemed to take Hjalmarsson’s status as a first-time offender into consideration, as well as the fact that it didn’t appear to be malicious in nature. We’d like to allow to leave your thoughts on the play, so feel free to log your vote on our poll and leave your comments in the comments section below.

Ryan Hackett
NHLHS Blackhawks Correspondent
rhackett@nhlhotstove.com
Twitter: @hawknut

Blackhawks Begin Title Defense With a New Look

Ryan Hackett — Thu, 07 Oct 2010 21:49:15 +0000

It is rare that putting things off until the last minute works out for the best.

When it comes to the 2010-2011 season preview for the Chicago Blackhawks, however, it is definitely a smart move. Had this been published much earlier, it would have been full of glaring errors in roster names and line pairings that no amount of editing could repair. Early in the preseason many Blackhawks observers would have told you that the Hawks’ opening-night lineup would have included the likes of Igor Makarov, Ryan Potulny, and the newest fan-favorite, Jeremy Morin.

But as we near the opening faceoff of the NHL season for the Blackhawks, none of the aforementioned players will begin the year donning the Indian Head sweater. As of practice on Tuesday, 5 October, the forward lines were as follows:

Tomas Kopecky/Jonathan Toews/Marian Hossa
Fernando Pisani/Patrick Sharp/Patrick Kane
Brian Bickell/Dave Bolland/Troy Brouwer
Viktor Stalberg/Jake Dowell/Jack Skille

As fascinating as that is, here are the defensive pairings so far:

Duncan Keith/Brent Seabrook
Niklas Hjalmarsson/Nick Leddy
John Scott/Nick Boynton/Jordan Hendry

This is in large part, of course, due to the unfortunate (and yet again untimely) injury to high-priced defenseman Brian Campbell. On the bright side, it will give young Leddy a real chance to prove himself at the NHL level, and he just might surprise some people. While his decision-making skills might need some polishing, the kid knows how to play the game.

Regarding the offensive alignments, keeping Hossa and Kopecky on the same line has intangible benefits that supercede traditional logic. The second line has a double dose of sharp-shooters that would trump most teams first lines, and will account for more than its fair share of goals. The third line, currently powered by the “Killer B’s”, should provide strength as well as two-way forward work that will frustrate opposing offenses to no end. As far as the bottom lines, well, Stalberg can straight out fly. As long as his linemates Dowell and Skille can do better than allow two goals per shift he should impress hockey fans (and fantasy owners, yours truly included) league-wide.

It’s no secret that the “experts” have almost all but excluded the defending Stanley Cup champions from even sniffing the Western Conference Finals. Well then it’s a good thing that this team is more than accustomed to overcoming the odds, as they did on their way to raising the most sought-after trophy in professional sports this past June.

The Hawks have a heretofore unforeseen large target on both sides of their sweater to start this season. Many teams with a leader close to a decade my junior would be sweating enough to cause heart palpitations, but not the one with a captain like Toews. This is the thing that gives the Blackhawks the edge. They’re young, but they’re much more experienced with high-pressure situations than much of the league.

While the Detroit Red Wings, the Vancouver Canucks, the San Jose Sharks are perennial threats to contend for the title in the Western Conference, the Blackhawks remain among the pre-season front-runners as well.

The Blackhawks also look to disspell the longstanding myth of the “Stanley Cup Hangover”, and will have to do so with a remarkably different roster than the one with which they finished last season. There’s no question that the title defense is going to be difficult, but the strong leadership is poised and determined to get this team back to the finals to rightfully defend their spot at the top of the mountain. It shouldn’t surprise anyone if the Blackhawks are still playing in late May of 2011, because in their minds, anything less is unacceptable.

Ryan Hackett
NHLHS Blackhawks Correspondent
rhackett@nhlhotstove.com
Twitter: @hawknut

Mock Draft: Selections 1-14 2010 NHL Entry Draft

Alexander Monaghan — Wed, 14 Apr 2010 03:14:24 +0000

Senior Editor Alexander Monaghan takes his first crack at the 2010 NHL Entry Draft as we now know the original order of picks 1-14 following tonight’s lottery.

As the draft selection begins to wind down, here is my initial look at which prospect each team would take barring any trades. Keep in mind this article is the first possible selections and will change as the playoffs begin to wind down. Keep an eye out for us taking an even deeper look into the 2010 NHL Draft as the draft day comes closer.

	Taylor Hall takes the number one selection after defeating Tyler Seguin in the playoffs. With Jordan Eberle already on board in Edmonton, the Oilers will reunite the tandem which almost singlehandedly won the gold medal in this year’s WJHC.
	Cam Fowler will bring a franchise defenseman to Boston after Hall leaves the map. With Zdeno Chara now 33-years-old they need a blue liner to take over in a few years and can be patient with second Windsor Spitfire to go in the draft.
	Erik Gudbranson will bring another solid young defenseman to the Panther blue line. Even though this team continues to struggle in the scoring department, they still need to build a team from the blue line out and will add to a solid core of Jason Garrison, Keith Ballard and Dmitry Kulikov.
	Tyler Seguin looked like he could take the number one spot but falls in the Blue Jacket’s lap due to organizational needs. Although a natural center, he likely will flank Rick Nash on the opposite wing for years to come and solidify the top 6 forward corps of their struggling offense.
	Nino Niederreiter would look great on a team with another great Swiss player in Mark Streit. The talented left wing could be the best offensive player to come out of Switzerland and would give the Islanders another identity.
	Brandon Gormley makes the perfect compliment to Victor Hedman. With the Tampa Bay blue line looking increasingly porous, this mobile defenseman out of the QMJHL will fit in well with other alums of the Quebec league and solidify a young defensive core.
	Mikael Granlund looks to be the top pick out of Finland this season so the Hurricanes should select him based on their recent success fitting into their system. The young left wing would fit in well with Tuomo Ruutu, Joni Pitkanen and Jussi Jokinen in their core.
	Vladimir Tarasenko will be the first Russian selected in the draft. Which better team to mold a Russian superstar than the one which just traded away Ilya Kovalchuk.
	Derek Forbort grew up in Duluth, Minnesota making him the logical pick of the Wild. Last year they took Nick Leddy, another local boy but traded him to Chicago in the deal which landed Cam Barker. Taking another local kid seems like their MO.
	Alex Burmistrov fits the mold of the past Rangers selection as he certainly possesses the highest upside of the players left on board. With Artem Anisimov already playing a full season and Evgeny Grachev waiting in the wings, this playmaking center will fit right in when he comes to the Big Apple.
	Ryan Johanson comes out of the WHL, where the Stars have found success drafting young forwards. With most of their blue line young, they search for more help in the scoring department. Johanson plays that role and can replace either Brad Richards of Mike Ribeiro down the road.
	The Ducks alternate taking a forward and a defenseman every season, so this season they are due to draft a defenseman. At this point Mark Pysyk seems like the logical selection. He comes out of the WHL, where the team selected Ryan Getzlaf, Joffrey Lupul and Brendan Mikkelson from in the past.
	Brett Connolly falls to the Coyotes after spending the majority of the season injured. The talented left wing fits the same profile of current captain Shane Doan so he should fit right under the veteran’s wing. He may be the steal of the draft at this point and makes the Olli Jokinen trade look that much better.
	Jack Campbell will be the first goaltender selected in the draft and to no better team. Chris Mason and Ty Conklin will not stay for too much longer making the Blues need even that greater. Campbell will make a great addition other US born players like David Backes and TJ Oshie.

Alexander Monaghan
NHLHS Senior Editor
amonaghan@nhlhotstove.com
@NHLHotStove